Not applicable to this application.
Not applicable to this application.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a drug-dispensing system for animals and more specifically it relates to an animal syringe system for injecting animals with a syringe using a delivery system that allows application at a distance away from the animal and for the automatic withdrawal of the syringe from the animal once drug delivery is complete.
2. Description of the Related Art
Drug-dispensing systems for animals have been in use for years. Typically, for the treatment of livestock, the livestock has to be corralled and then manipulated into a treatment chute where the animal is physically immobilized and then the drug is injected into the animal using a standard drug-delivery syringe. In the case of wild and/or dangerous animals, the animals are normally tranquilized using a tranquilization dart and once the animal is rendered harmless the drug is injected into the animal using a standard drug-delivery syringe.
This product could be used for the treatment of entire herds, but would be most beneficial for the treatment of just a few head of livestock in hard to treat places such as large feedlots, pastures, and other similar places. In an effort to administer treatment to just a couple animals in a pen with the prior art systems, the entire pen of animals may need to get chased around and the couple head needed to get treated would need to get segregated from the herd and restrained. It is in this process a tame animal can become tired and dangerous. With wild and/or dangerous animals the prior art is hampered by the inherent risks in tranquilizing animals. Too much tranquilizer can kill the animal, and not enough can be dangerous for the individual involved in attempting to administer drugs to the animal.
Examples of patented devices which are related to the present invention include U.S. Pat. No. 5,868,699 to Woodruff et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,024,077 to Kotsiopoulos; U.S. Pat. No. 5,333,594 to Robinson; U.S. Pat. No. 4,616,622 to Milliman; U.S. Pat. No. 3,948,263 to Drake, Jr. et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 3,616,758 to Komarov; U.S. Pat. No. 3,420,220 to Ferrando; and U.S. Pat. No. 979,993 to Obyrne et al.
While these devices may be suitable for the particular purpose to which they address, they are not as suitable for injecting animals with a syringe using a delivery system that allows application at a distance away from the animal and for the automatic withdrawal of the syringe from the animal once drug-delivery is complete. Current systems do not provide for delivering drugs to an animal in a quick, efficient and non-labor intensive method.
In these respects, the animal syringe system according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of injecting animals with a syringe using a delivery system that allows application at a distance away from the animal and for the automatic withdrawal of the syringe from the animal once drug-delivery is complete.
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of drug-dispensing systems for animals now present in the prior art, the present invention provides a new animal syringe system construction wherein the same can be utilized for injecting animals with a syringe using a delivery systems that allows application at a distance away from the animal and for the automatic withdrawal of the syringe from the animal once drug-delivery is complete.
The general purpose of the present invention, which will be described subsequently in greater detail, is to provide a new animal syringe system that has many of the advantages of the drug-dispensing systems for animals mentioned heretofore and many novel features that result in a new animal syringe system which is not anticipated, rendered obvious, suggested, or even implied by any of the prior art drug-dispensing system for animals, either alone or in any combination thereof.
To attain this, the present invention generally comprises a drug-dispensing syringe inserted into an inner syringe sleeve correspondingly inserted into a compression spring inserted into an outer sleeve. This assembled drug-dispensing projectile is loaded into a velocity adjustable air rifle. The drug dispensing projectile is fired at an animal with the syringe needle impaling the animal. A trip device is then triggered releasing tension springs on the plunger of the syringe which injects the drug dose into the animal. As the plunger reaches its endpoint it triggers a compression spring inside the outer sleeve which pushes the inner sleeve and syringe away from the animal and the front end of the outer sleeve. As the syringe needle retracts completely into the outer sleeve the drug-dispensing projectile falls harmlessly to the ground.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter and that will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of the description and should not be regarded as limiting.
A primary object of the present invention is to provide an animal syringe system that will overcome the shortcomings of the prior art devices.
A second object is to provide an animal syringe system for injecting animals with a syringe using a delivery system that allows application at a distance away from the animal.
Another object is to provide an animal syringe system that allows for visually marking the animals that have been treated.
An additional object is to provide an animal syringe system that is easy to operate.
A further object is to provide an animal syringe system that creates less stress on the animal by eliminating the need to catch and physically restrain the animal.
An additional object is to provide an animal syringe system that is not labor intensive.
Another object is to provide an animal syringe system that prevents accidental tranquilizer overdosing of an animal.
Another object is to provide an animal syringe system that allows the treating of animals by a single individual.
A further object is to provide an animal syringe system that allows for the insertion of variable doses of drug.
An additional object is to provide an animal syringe system that provides for firing at adjustable velocity rates.
Another object is to provide an animal syringe system that allows for easy retrival and reuse.
Another object is to provide an animal syringe system that allows for easy refilling of the propulsion source.
A further object is to provide an animal syringe system that allows for its operation from within a vehicle or behind a protective structure.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become obvious to the reader and it is intended that these objects and advantages are within the scope of the present invention.